Russia swept the two gold medals in the team events at the Dynamic Billiards European Championships taking place in Antalya, Turkey. First Russia’s strong men’s team beat Denmark without losing a match in the final and then the ladies’ team sealed a double gold as they beat Germany 2-0.
The Russian ladies’ team consisted of the minimum two players in the shape of the stellar Kristina Tkach and 20 year-old Alexandra Guleikova and they lost just a single match as they went undefeated through the field in the format that involves an 8-ball and 9-ball match followed by a shoot-out if it’s tied at 1-1. There were nine countries in total represented in the event.
After seeing off a strong-looking Polish team 2-0 in the semi-final, they emphatically beat Germany 2-0 for the gold. Earlier, Poland had defeated Germany 2-0 in the last four to relegate the Germans to a bronze.
For Kristina Tkach it was her third team medal at the European Pool Championships while her playing partner, Alexandra Guleikova opened her medal account with a gold.
Commented Tkach, “I think it was a team effort completely. I know Alexandra tried her best and I also tried mine and I was counting on her a lot. It was great to win the team gold and I have further chances in the individual events.
Guleikova added, “It’s a big honour for me. I tried really hard and wanted to play my best and I’m so excited about this!”
Medals – Ladies
Gold – Russia (K. Tkach, A. Guleikova)
Silver – Germany (V. Ivanovskaia, I. Kaplan, M. Sussenguth,
Bronze – Poland (O. Zalewska, M. Zabek)
Sweden (L. Furberg, M. Nguyen, M. Margeta)
Andrey Seroshtan, Konstantin Stepanov, Sergey Lutsker and Fedor Gorst
In the men’s division, there was more dominance from Russia as they won gold in a strong 22 nation field. The team of EC straight pool champ, Fedor Gorst, experienced veteran Konstantin Stepanov, big-breaking Sergey Lutsker and back-up man Andriy Seroshtan was just too strong despite an unexpected snag on the road to gold.
After beating Switzerland in their opening match, they found themselves on the one-loss side of the bracket after an upset win by Portugal in the winner’s qualification round. However, they battled back with a win over Norway before they faced a good-looking Dutch team in the last eight.
Armed with a 2-0 win, Russia then scrapped a 2-1 win over Poland to reach the final where they faced Denmark.
The format features teams with a maximum of five players with only three playing in any one match. The games are 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball with the final match not played in the event of a 2-0 win.
The Danes had themselves been dumped into the one-loss side courtesy of a terrific performance from Northern Cyprus. Wins over Croatia, Finland and Turkey saw them through to the quarters where they dispatched Portugal 2-1 before overcoming Germany by a similar scoreline to guarantee silver.
It was the Russians who prevailed though, needing just two wins to get their collective hands on the trophy and secure their first team gold in the history of the championship.
Fedor Gorst, who won his second gold medal of the championships said, “It feels great! Winning the first medal in the team division is always something special. In my opinion it’s always more pressure when you play in a team.
“Even when the last match is there and you’re tied 1-1 and you have to go and win the decider. Much more pressure than individual matches. We’re all happy though, and we’ll celebrate tonight”
For veteran Konstantin Stepanov it was a proud moment: “We’ve been close to the gold in the team division but we’ve never won it. I don’t play that much anymore but I have experience and I still play some good 8 ball and I’m so happy for the younger generation because we won this gold medal altogether with experience and their power. They wanted it so much.”
Finally, Sergey Lutsker added; “I think we won because we have a really good atmosphere in the team. We know each other a lot and practice with each other and Kosta (Stepanov) teaches us a lot.”
Medals – Men
Gold – Russia – (K.Stepanov, S. Lutsker, F. Gorst, A. Seroshtan)
Silver – Denmark (A. Madsen, M. Krause, C. Lentz, J. Thyde)
Bronze – Germany (R. Souquet, T. Hohmann, L. Kukherm)
Poland (W. Szewczyk, M. Fortunski, D. Maciol, T. Kaplan, M. Skoneczny)
In a thrilling and high class pool match, Eklent Kaci (ALB) took his next title at the Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open 2019 by winning the final match over Joshua Filler (GER) with 9:6.
For the first time in a long time now, the #1 seeded player in a Euro-Tour event met the #2 seeded player in the final match. Today, Kaci (#1) and Filler (#2) made that clash come true so high class pool entertainment was guaranteed. And the final match kept the promise and fulfilled the high expectations. Both players played up to their limit, knowing that the winner of that encounter will be the #1 ranked player after this tournament. Players took racks in turn until the scoreboard displayed 5:5. Then, Kaci managed to get a 2-rack advantage over Filler, leading 7:5. Filler got to 7:6 when Kaci answered that and won the next rack himself. With Kaci being on the hill, Joshua Filler broke rack 15 but committed an illegal break. Kaci used that chance and ran the table to win the event and take his next title at the Euro-Tour.
That concludes the coverage of the Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open 2019.
The Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open were played in the Sporthotel Alpina Alpendorf in St. Johann im Pongau, Austria, on up to 22 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event was hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.eurotouronline.com or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Ralf Souquet (left), Wojciech Szewczyk (middle) and Maximilian Lechner
Maximilian Lechner (AUT) has booked his spot in the round of the last 16 players in the Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open 2019 with a 9:7 victory over Petri Makkonen (FIN).
Lechner will be accompanied in the round by his teammate Mario He (AUT) who managed to eliminate „The Terminator“ Niels Feijen (NED) with 9:6 in the last round today.
Joshua „Killer“ Filler (GER) is also among the last 16 men standing. He defeated Christian Froehlich (GER) 9:3.
BCA Hall of Fame Ralf Souquet (GER) took down Miguel Silva (POR) with 9:7 and kept a foot in the door to take a shot at the title here in St. Johann im Pongau.
Every day, up to two matches will be streamed LIVE over the EPBF Facebook page. Check for updates and announcements.
The Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open will commence tomorrow, June 15th, at 10:00 CET with matches from the last 16 players single elimination.
The Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open are played in the Sporthotel Alpina Alpendorf in St. Johann im Pongau, Austria, on up to 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.eurotouronline.com or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
The Team competition of the Dynamic Billard European Championships 2019 have been decided. The Spanish Men’s Team and the Portuguese Women’s Team took the titles in their respective division.
The Spanish team took a straight way into the final match against the Austrians. After defeating Cyprus with 2:0, they dethroned the defending Champion team Poland with 2:1. Then they booked their seat in the quarter-final with a victory of team Russia. After eliminating team Czech Republic, the Spaniards again met team Poland. Once more, they won 2:1. In the final match, Francisco Diaz-Pizarro was the first one ready when he pocketed the final 10-ball against Albin Ouschan to win his individual with 8:3. The 8-ball match was still on and also pretty close. Alcaide was leading 7:6 over Maximilian Lechner when Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz won pretty clearly with 9:5 in his 9-ball match over Mario He. That brought the second point to team Spain which already was the title for them.
Top 8 Men’s Teams
1. Spain
2. Austria
3. Poland
Russia
5. Czech Republic
Germany
Portugal
Sweden
In the women’s team competition, the current titleholders were able to defend their crown. Team Portugal with Sara Rocha and Vania Franco went undefeated all the way into the final match. They overcame Team Spain 2:0, then Team Italy 2:0. In the semi-final, the had a thriller against Team Russia and managed to win that in the shoot-out with 8:7. In the final match, the Portuguese met team Germany. Sara Rocha was dominating the 9-ball match with Veronica Ivanovskaia and clearly rode the winning wave with 7:2. The 8-ball match between Franco and Tina Vogelmann was a bit closer, but in the end Franco took the match and the title winning 6:3 over the German.
Top 8 Women’s Team
1. Portugal
2. Germany
3. Poland
Russia
5. Italy
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine
The situation in the medal table has not changed too much, but the distances are pretty close between the different nations. Poland is still leading the table with 2 Gold, 1 Silver and 3 Bronze Medals. The Russian team is up their neck, only having one Bronze Medal less than the Polish. Third ranked nation is Finland with one medal of each colour.
Earlier today, matches of the 9-ball individuals were played. Defending Champion Konrad Juszczyszyn (POL) took down Marc Turpel (LUX) and eliminated him with 9:1 from the field. Denis Grabe (EST) paved his way into the round of the last 32 players in 9-ball by outplaying Jani Uski (FIN) 9:8. In the all-Russian class between Fedor Gorst and Konstantin Stepanov, Gorst remained on top in the end and won the match with 9:6. „The Kaiser“ Ralf Souquet (GER) had to deal with „The Terminator“ Niels Feijen (NED). While Souquet has already taken a silver medal in the 8-ball earlier this week, Feijen was still looking for his medal to come. But Souquet destroyed that dream of Feijen by winning 9:5. With Feijen out of the 9-ball, he will not be able to win a medal in the individuals in this year’s European Championships. Another national clash happened between the two Dutch players Jan Rempe and Marc Bijsterbosch. Young Rempe sneaked past Bijsterbosch by taking the match with 9:8. Joshua Filler (GER) wasted no time with Sergey Lutsker (RUS), winning 9:2 in 25 minutes. French up and rising player Alex Montpellier sealed the destiny for Eklent Kaci (ALB) in the 9-ball individuals by making it with 9:8 over the Albanian. Sam Wetzel (LUX) surprisingly took out newly crowned 10-ball European Champion Mieszko Fortunski (POL) 9:8. That surprise was as close and as unexpected as the match between Mats Schjetne (NOR) and Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz (ESP). 9:8 was the final result in favour of Schjetne.
The final day of the Dynamic Billard European Championships 2019 for men, women, U23 and wheelchair athletes will commence tomorrow morning at 10:00 CET with matches in the 9-ball individuals competition in the Men’s and Under 23 division.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Today the European Championship 8-ball competition was in full swing. Men, Women, Under 23 and Wheelchair athletes demonstrated their shotmaking and tactical skills on the battlefield of slate.
In the men’s division, defending Champion Bahram Lotfy (DEN) unexpectedly lost his opening match to Sebastian Staab (GER) 7:8. That brought him to the loser’s side straight away where he needed to win in order to get his ticket for the single elimination of the last 64 players. Lotfy encountered Marios Artemiou (CYP) and it did not take much off him to win this match with 8:1. Then in the single elimination, Lotfy was drawn against Konstantin Stepanov (RUS). That match started out quite even but Lotfy capitalised from his break shot while Stepanov was struggling to make a ball when it was his turn to open the rack. In the end, Lotfy remained victorious with 8:3 and will now face Karol Skowerski (POL) tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET in the next round. Other exciting matches in that round will be the clash between Eklent Kaci (ALB) and Thorsten Hohmann (GER) and the match with Mieszko Fortunski (POL) and Fedor Gorst (RUS), just to name a few.
In the women’s 8-ball, Vania Franco (POR) showed some attractive performance in order to make it to the single elimination stage. After having lost her first match 2:6 to Ewa Bak (POL), Franco went over to the loser’s side where she met Louise Furberg (SWE). The experienced player from Sweden had no chance against Franco who prevailed with 6:2. Then, Franco advanced and took down Kateryna Polovinchuk (UKR) in a thrilling combat with 6:5. Right after that match, the Portuguese had to deal with yesterday’s surprise winner, Christine Feldmann (SUI). That match really took an unexpected turn since it was Franco to dominated the match from start to finish. Feldmann did not have the slightest chance and Franco demolished her with 6:1 in the end. In the single elimination stage of the last 16 players, Vania Franco will encounter Eylul Kibaroglu (TUR).
In the under 23 division, defending Champion Casper Matikainen (FIN) is straight on track. After having won a silver medal in the men’s 10-ball last night against Mieszko Fortunski (POL), Matikainen had his first matches in the Under 23’s division. He wasted no time and defeated Josef Nechvile (CZE) 8:1 and Daniel Lang (SVK) 8:4 to book his seat in the quarter-finals already. He will be joined there by Vitaliy Patsura (UKR), Pijus Labutis (LTU) and Jan Van Lierop (NED) who are also through to the single elimination over the winner’s side. The quarter-finals in 8-ball will be played tomorrow afternoon at 16:00 CET.
In the wheelchair division, the biggest of all upsets possible did happen. Unheralded David Himpe (BEL) handed a whitewash to defending Champion Jouni Tahti (FIN), defeating the Finish with 5:0. In the next round, Himpe had to give in 4:5 to another underdog, Leszek Blumczynski (POL) with 4:5. Tahti needs to overcome Kurt Deklerck (BEL) for his spot in the quarter-finals tomorrow.
The Dynamic Billard European Championships 2019 for men, women, U23 and wheelchair athletes will commence tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET with matches in the 8-ball individuals competition Men and Women.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Up until the very last moments of the round of 32 today, this year’s World 9-ball Championship was notable for its lack of upsets that always seem to be a hallmark of this annual 9-ball extravaganza. That is until Robbie Capito decided he wasn’t going away quietly.
Robbie Capito? Yeah, don’t be surprised that you haven’t heard of him. Not many outside of his native Hong Kong have. But this cool headed and fearless 17 year old of Filipino descent pulled off what is easily the biggest upset of this year’s championship, and one of the biggest we have seen in years here in Doha, when he came back from certain defeat and took down the world number one, Klenti Kaci, 11-10, to move into the final 16.
Only minutes before, Capito looked like he would be exiting the Al Arabi Sports Club as unknown as he was when entered at the start of his match. He trailed the mighty Albanian 7-1. He then slowly clawed his way back into the match, but it didn’t quite seem enough. Down 10-8, surely the steady Kaci would close out the match and move into the round of 16 on Wednesday.
Capito, who had earlier defeated Lebanon’s Mazen Berjaoui in the round of 64, never gave up, and he tied the score at 10 all. Breaking in the final frame and clearly under duress, he held his nerve and closed out the rack to notch an unlikely win, and an even more unlikely spot in the final 16 at the World 9-ball Championship.
Capito, who speaks four languages and is still in high school, will now go on to face Germany’s Joshua Filler when the tournament resumes on Wednesday.(the tournament will have a day off on Tuesday as Qatar celebrates its National Day.) The Hong Kong native will have to reach into his bag of tricks to stop the flashy young German, as Filler has looked unstoppable so far. The German played his trade marked fast and loose style in two easy wins so far, first against Greece’s Nikolas Malaj and then Vietnam’s Nguyen Anh Tuan.
If you like the youth movement in pool, you certainly want to pay attention to another 17 year old who has been turning heads this week. Like Capito, Poland’s Wiktor Zielinski is still in high school and can boast world class talent. The young Pole proudly displayed his formidable wares today in two solid wins, first against fellow Pole Tomasz Kaplan, and then the Philippines Johann Chua.
It will surely be fascinating to watch how Zielinski handles the likes of Albin Ouschan in the round of 16. The Austrian, who won this event in 2016, is playing top notch pool and looks impervious to the pressure. Ouschan’s two strong wins today showed he has the goods to go all the way this year.
Defending champion Carlo Biado stayed on track to defend his title, and he is also now the only Filipino left in the field. After two wins today Biado will engage in a fascinating matchup in the last 16 against former world 9-ball champion, and China’s last hold out, Wu Jiaqing.
America’s Shane Van Boening continued his march through the field today with two steady wins. Van Boening played with his characteristic laid back style, but always on point when he needed to be. After losing in the final here in 2015 and 2016, the American seems to be carrying a bit of a chip on his shoulder. It’s victory on nothing for Van Boening, and with the way he is performing now, he could be considered the favorite.
SVB, though, will first have to get through a red hot Chris Melling of England in a match that already has pool fans around the world salivating. Melling played in his usual swashbuckling in his two victories today but will have to step it up several notches to take down the determined Van Boening.
Corey Duel is the only other American remaining in the field. The veteran always plies his trade in characteristic quiet and laid back fashion and this week, these traits have served him well. Duel earned his spot in the final 16 with two workmanlike performances first against Canada’s John Morra and then versus Spain’s Francisco Diaz Pizarro.
Duel, though, hasn’t yet faced anything like what he will be up against on Wednesday when he matches wits with Taiwan’s Ko Pin Yi. Ko, who won the China Open this year and won this event in 2015, hammered compatriot Liu Ri Teng in the round of 64, 11-5, then did it one better to Korea’s Woo Seung Ryu, 11-4.
The Taiwanese are proving yet again that they are arguably the world’s strongest pool playing nation with a quarter of the final 16. It will be an all Taiwan matchup when Lin Ta Li takes on world number two, Chang Jung Lin. Chang had struggled in the group stages but shook off the rust today and looked his old killer self. In the round of 32 he disposed of hall of famer Ralf Souquet, 11-6.
Lin Wu Kun’s beautiful cue action led him to the semi-finals here last year and this year he appears to feel he can get there again or even more. Lin had to scrape his way into the final 16 in an 11-10 nail biter against China’s Liu Haitao.
Lin will face Finland’s suddenly red hot Petri Makkonen. The hard working Finn put in a tremendous effort today with wins over Filipino Jeffrey Ignacio, 11-9, then young Russian Fedor Gorst, 11-8.
World number six Niels Feijen has that same look he had when he marched to the crown here in 2014. The Dutchman looked untouchable in his two big wins today and he is admittedly confident and playing without pressure. In the round of 16 he’ll have to square off with his Mosconi Cup teammate Alex Kazakis. The Greek grinded out two tough wins today, first 11-10 over Poland’s Radislaw Babica, then over Finland’s Casper Matikainen, 11-9.
After a day off where the country celebrates the Qatar National Day, play resumes on Wednesday, December 19 at 11am Doha time(GMT +3.)
The winner of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.
Fans around the world can watch four tables on our free live stream which can be accessed via the live scoring page here; http://www.esnooker.pl/live/en/tsnew.php
Click the tables where you see the word "Video" and you will be taken to Youtube to watch the match. Tables 1, 7,8,9. Please visit the WPA Facebook Page for more information.
*The 2018 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from December 10-20, 2018. The event is hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
The WPA is on Twitter; @poolwpa
Visit the official website of the WPA at www.wpapool.com
The players will compete on Wiraka DYNASTY Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.
Media coverage of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship is being supported by the American Poolplayers Association(APA). Join the World's Largest Pool League today at http://bit.ly/2G5vYZY. Please visit join.poolplayers.com
A veritable armada of pool’s biggest stars pushed their way through to the Final 64 knockout stage at the Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha today, as the business end of proceedings quickly started to take shape at the 2018 World 9-ball Championship.
It was a very busy day which saw 32 players qualify for the money rounds, and another 32 players see their dreams of glory come to a screeching halt.
Of course it was quite expected when the tournament began on Friday that over half the original field of 128 players from over 40 countries had no chance at actually winning the event. But the outcomes today were somewhat surprising in that we saw few of the upsets fans have come to expect in the group stages over the years. The only big name to fall by the wayside and get a pink slip was 2001 World 9-ball Champion and Hall of Famer Mika Immonen, who lost his second straight match in as many days.
Otherwise the day’s action saw one superstar and rising star after the next take their place in the final 64. When the field is filled at the end of the day’s play on Sunday, fans around the world can expect one of the finest runs to the gold in many years.
World number one Klenti Kaci hasn’t looked his sharpest so far. But the 19 year old Albanian did what he had to do in a steady 9-6 win over Kuwaiti Meshaal Al Murdhi.
Defending champion Carlo Biado of the Philippines seemed to be on cruise control in his 9-5 win over Russia’s Sergey Lutsker. Despite being the reigning 9-ball king, the Filipino great benefits from being so humble and so low key that he plays almost unnoticed.
The biggest winners Saturday in terms of countries was Taiwan, which saw a whopping seven of its players qualify for the round of 64. 2015 World 9-ball champion Ko Pin Yi looked the goods today as he handily beat Czech Republic’s Roman Hybler, 9-4. 2017 semi-finalist Lin Wu Kun grinded out a solid 9 – 7 victory over former champion Yukio Akagariyama of Japan. Ko’s younger brother Ko Ping Chung took a 9 – 6 win over Greece’s Nikolas Malai. Hsieh Chia Chen beat Russian strongman Ruslan Chinhov 9-8 to make it through.vLui Ri Ten beat American Billy Thorpe 9-7 to make it through.
Taiwan’s biggest monster right now—and that is saying something– is surely Chang Jung Lin who is currently ranked number 2 in the world. Chang did win his second straight match to qualify today, but he once again had to go to the limit to get there. Chang blew an 8-5 lead to Greece’s Damianos Giallourakis and had to eke out victory with a nervy clear in the very last rack for a second straight 9-8 win.
The USA’s Shane Van Boening, who is one of the heavy favorites this week in Doha, didn’t have as easy a time today as he did on day one. But he was never in real trouble against Venezuelan veteran Jalal Al Sarisi, winning 9-7. SVB’s Mosconi Cup teammate Corey Duel played steady 9-ball and easily defeated Finland’s Petri Makkonen 9-4 to make the knockout stage.
World number six and 2014 champion Niels Feijen had another solid day, defeating Spain’s Francisco Diaz-Pizarro, 9-7. The Dutchman’s Mosconi teammate Albin Ouschan didn’t fare as well as he took a thumping from Poland’s Konrad Juszczyszyn, 9-4. Juszczyszyn may not be a household name to pool fans but it should be noted that he is the current European 9-ball champion. Another Pole who scored a very big victory was Mateusz Sniegocki who took down a very tough Filipino, Jeffrey Ignacio, 9-5. Tomasz Kaplan made it three for Poland today with a win over South Africa’s Jason Theron.
It was good day for the Germans as both Ralf Souquet and Joshua Filler won their second straight matches to qualify for the final 64. 18 year old Russian Fedor Gorst continued to impress as he qualified with a handy 9-1 win over Jeong Young Hwa of Korea.
It was a very big day for the Japanese side as three players made it through with impressive wins. Takano Tomoo took down former world champion Wu Jiaqing 9-8. Naoyuki Oi was a 9 – 4 winner over Finland’s Casper Matikainen. And Tomoya Iima took a 9 – 7 win over Hoang Guong Quoc of Vietnam.
Other winners who qualified for the knockout rounds included the Philippines Jeffrey De Luna, Singapore’s Aloysius Yapp, Canada’s Alex Pagulayan, Myanmar’s talented Phone Myint Kyaw, Spain’s Fracisco Sanchez Ruiz, Greece’s Alex Kazakis, China’s Wang Can and Russia’s Konstantin Stepanov.
Chris Melling, the lone Brit in the field, again looked the goods as he easily beat South Africa’s Richard Halliday, 9-3. Qatar’s Waleed Majid also won his second straight to make it through, beating China’s Xu Xiacong, 9-6.
Play continues on Sunday in Doha at the Al Arabi with the action beginning at 12pm local time(GMT +3.) All matches on Sunday will be do or die, losers side matches with the winners advancing to the knockout round and the losers going out of the event.
The winner of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.
*The 2018 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from December 10-20, 2018. The event is hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
Fans around the world will be able to view many of the matches via the QBSF’s free live streaming platform. Multiple tables will be available to view online at no charge to the public. Please visit the WPA Facebook Page for more information.
The WPA is also on Twitter; @poolwpa
Visit the official website of the WPA at www.wpapool.com
The players will compete on Wiraka DYNASTY Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.
Media coverage of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship is being supported by the American Poolplayers Association(APA). Join the world’s largest pool league today. Please visit join.poolplayers.com
Shane Van Boening has never won a World 9-ball Championship. He did, of course, come ever so close, finishing runner up in 2015, and 2016. After skipping last year’s championship, however, there is a palpable sense in Doha that the American star is absolutely destined to finally grab the world crown in 2018.
Interestingly there are eight former World 9-ball Champions in this year’s field, all of them still highly capable of pulling off the impossible feat yet again. But nobody is yet talking about them. It’s the moniker ‘SVB’ who is on everyone’s lips.
Van Boening has admitted that he is playing his best pool perhaps ever. After a grueling six month training regime, he led Team USA to a thrilling victory in the Mosconi Cup last week. He showed up in Doha saying he intends to win, and that he is playing with zero pressure on his shoulders.
Fans in Doha, and the pro pool community itself seem to agree something is afoot. While most players played in the relative obscure quiet of the cavernous Al Arabi Sports Club on day 1 of this year’s championship, Van Boening’s time in the arena today actually drew a fair amount of watchers. Everyone and anyone who likes pro pool around here seems to feel something special is afoot.
The American didn’t disappoint in his first outing, as he crushed Poland’s Marek Kudlik 9-1. Good breaking, solid potting, deft safeties all showed up in Van Boening’s arsenal today. Combined with his quiet confidence, SVB laid down an early marker stating that nothing short of victory in Doha will suffice.
As all 128 players saw action on the first day of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship, it’s clear, though, that Van Boening will have plenty of serious contenders just as eager and capable of taking the crown on December 20. This year’s field is positively stacked with ferocious talent, both young and not so young. With the Wiraka tables breaking fairly easily—wing ball down, 1 in or near the side pocket—it’s all going to come down to who can handle the almost impossible pressure. Pool fans are in for a real treat over the next six days.
In the group stages it’s all about just winning two matches, to make it through to the final 64, where the tournament becomes single knockout all the way to the final. Defending champion Carlo Biado of the Philippines had an easy time of it today, easily taking down Argentina’s Llanos Jorge, 9-3. The man who lost in last year’s final to Biado, fellow Filipino Roland Garcia, came into Doha one of the hottest players in Asia and with high expectations. Garcia, though, stumbled out of the blocks to Taiwan’s Hsu Jui An, 9-8. Garcia will move over to the one loss side of his group where he needs two wins to advance.
World number one Klenti Kaci came out looking tired against the always tough Chilean Alejandro Carvajal. The Albanian teen was down four racks early but battled back to clip Carvajal at the wire, 9-7.
Pool’s young guns get more numerous and more dangerous year after year. 21 year old German sensation Joshua Filler played his usual brand of solid, care free pool in a 9-6 win over Bulgaria’s Ruslanov Stanimir. 17 year old Russian Fedor Gorst handled the always tough Kuwaiti Omar Al Shaheen, winning 9-6. 17 year old Pole Wiktor Zielinski came in with some expectations on his shoulders but he fell to Japan’s Tomoya Iima, 9-7.
It was a good day for the USA Mosconi Cup team as both Billy Thorpe and Corey Duel notched victories, and moved with one win of making the final 64. Canada’s Alex Pagulayan, a winner in 2004, barely scraped by Lebanon’s Mohammad Berjaoui, 9 – 8. Fellow Canadian John Morra has an easier time of it today, blanking the Philippines Roberto Brillantes, 9-0.
Taiwan’s Chang Jung Lin is considered one of the tournament favorites but he struggled mightily against Korea’s Kwon Hojun. Chang was actually down 6-2 at one point but stormed back and won at the wire, 9-8.
Chang was one of eight Taiwanese notching victory today, including 2015 champion Ko Pin Yi, Ko’s younger brother Ko Ping Chun, Hsieh Chia Chen and Lin Wu Kun. The Ko’s actually have an even younger brother in the event, Ko Ping Han, but he lost to Japan’s Hayato Hijikata.
The four European Mosconi Cup players on hand all won today. Besides Kaci, Austria’s Albin Ouschan continued to look rock solid with a 9-4 win over the USA’s Thomas Tokoph. The Netherlands’ Niels Feijen waltzed to victory with a neat 9-5 win over the always stingy Taiwanese Chang Yu Lung. Greece’s Alexander Kazakis barely got by Slovakia’s Jakub Koniar, 9-8.
England’s Chris Melling is someone people seem to be talking about as a possible champion, and the lone British representative on hand didn’t disappoint, winning easily over the Netherlands Marc Bijsterboch, 9-2.
Former world champion Wu Jiaqing of China cruised with a 9-1 win over the Netherlands’ Jimmy Worung. China went 5 out of six today with wins also by Dang Jinhu, Liu Haitao, Wan Can and Xu Xiacong.
Former world champion and hall of famer Ralf Souquet found victory today with a 9-3 win over the Maldives’ Mohammed Hassan. But former world champion and fellow hall of famer Mika Immonen fell to Russia’s Ruslan Chinahov, 9-5.
Qatar’s favorite player made a splash today. Waleed Majid, who made it to the quarterfinals here in 2014, showed that he has clawed his way back into championship form with a 9-5 win over former US Open champion, Yu Hsuan “Kevin” Cheng.
Play continues on Saturday in Doha at the Al Arabi with the action beginning at 10am local time(GMT +3.) After the four sessions on Saturday, 32 players will be out and 32 players will be through to the final 64.
The winner of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.
*The 2018 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from December 10-20, 2018. The event is hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.
Fans around the world will be able to view many of the matches via the QBSF’s free live streaming platform. Multiple tables will be available to view online at no charge to the public. Please visit the WPA Facebook Page for more information.
The WPA is also on Twitter; @poolwpa
Visit the official website of the WPA at www.wpapool.com
The players will compete on Wiraka DYNASTY Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.
Media coverage of the 2018 World 9-ball Championship is being supported by the American Poolplayers Association(APA). Join the world’s largest pool league today. Please visit join.poolplayers.com
Jasmin Ouschan (AUT) and Mario He (AUT) went all the way to glory and pocketed the victories in their respective tournament.
In the men’s event, the Dynamic Billard Veldhoven Open 2018 Euro-Tour, Mario He defeated Eklent Kaci with 9:8 after a thrilling final match. In rack #3, Mario He forced Kaci to commit a foul and got ball in hand. But all of a sudden he found himself snookered behind the 6-ball when the 5-ball was on. He had completely misjudged the positioning of that shot. However, Mario He went for his jump stick and pocketed the 5-ball with a tremendous jump-shot over the whole table, having position for the next ball and running the rack to get to a 2:1 advantage over Kaci. The match went along with both players taking racks in turn. It was pretty striking that both played really accurate and only committed mistakes when the opponent forced them to. Balls were always pocketed into he center of the respective pocket. They both were full of self-confidence and optimism. It was Eklent Kaci in rack #15 who missed an easy 2-ball. He played it on the edge of the corner pocket and allowed Mario He to come back to the table though he could have scored to point into his account, going on the hill first. But instead, Mario He won that rack and got to the hill first, putting a hell of a lot of pressure on Kaci. But he wouldn’t be Eklent Kaci if he couldn’t stand the heat. The Albanian performed very calm and scored to make the match hill-hill at 8:8. It was Mario He to break. He had a ball pocketed and a tough shot on the 1-ball. But he fired that ball in without hesitation. Then, the layout was quite makable for him. He pocketed all remaining balls and deservedly won a very high class final match against Eklent Kaci with 9:8.
The women’s final was played between Jasmin Ouschan and Oliwia Czuprynska. Czuprynska had to overcome Sara Rocha (POR) in the semi-final this morning. The outcome of that match was totally open since Rocha really played up to her limits in this event. Czuprynska managed to get a 4:2 lead over Rocha, but the Portuguese struck back and even overtook Czuprynska on the fast lane, conquering 5:4 intermediate advantage over Czuprynska. After that, the batteries of Rocha seemed to have burned out. Czuprynska took the next three racks and won the semi-final with 7:5, booking her seat in the final match. Jasmin Ouschan had her semi-final match against Tamara Peeters-Rademakers (NED). That encounter ran quite smoothly for the favoured Austrian. Ouschan achieved a comfortable 7:3 victory over Peeters-Rademakers and booked her seat for the final match. The final match started out quite even. Both contestants performed rock solid and the was displayed on the scoreboard. After 5 racks, Ouschan had a thin 3:2 lead over Czuprynska. In rack #6, Ouschan missed a long 9-ball and gave Czuprynska a chance to tie the score at 3:3. But Czuprynska also missed and Ouschan did not give her a second attempt and instead scored herself to turn the score 4:2. Form that moment on, Czuprynska had totally lost her rhythm and momentum. As so often, Ouschan dominated the table to her liking. The mistake that Czuprynska made in rack #6 broke her neck and Ouschan grew strong from it. In the end, the finals result displayed on the scoreboard was 7:3 in favour of Ouschan.
That concludes the coverage of the Dynamic Billard Veldhoven open and the EPBF Veldhoven Open for Women.
The tournaments were played on up to 60 tables which were all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event.
The event was hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organised by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.eurotouronline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Today, the 9-ball competition was launched at the Dynamic Billard European Pool Championships 2018 in NH Conference Centre Koningshof, Veldhoven, The Netherlands. Several interesting results could be witnessed.
One outstanding match was definitely the encounter between Fedor Gorst (RUS) and Andreas Madsen (DEN). Both players have earned their merits in the junior’s divisions in the previous years. Madsen is 21-years-old, Gorst is 18 years of age these days. The match started out quite promising for Gorst. He had the first break shot and pocketed two balls, having a perfect position for the 2-ball. He played a good safety shot and forced Madsen to commit a foul. Then he ran the balls but missed an easy 6-ball, leaving it all for Madsen. What an unnecessary miss that was! Madsen ran out and took the next three consecutive racks as well, advancing to a 4:0 lead over Gorst. Finally in rack #5, Gorst was able to open his account in the match, getting to 1:4. But Madsen struck back and won another two racks, leading 6:1 now after 7 racks. Having executed the break shot in rack #8, Madsen could play the 2-ball but not pocket it. He played a good safety shot. Gorst was able to play a correct shot and come up with a resafe position. Madsen hit the 2-ball but left a shot for Gorst. The Russian came tot he table and won his second rack, turning the scoreboard to 2:6. The match continued with Gorst committing unbelievably easy mistakes while Madsen was rock solid and focussed on the table. He continued shooting pretty self-confident and consequently won the match with 9:2. Andreas Madsen will advance into the round of the last 64 players single elimination while Gorst awaits the winner of the match Erol Kayas (TUR) v Michel Bartol (CRO) for his chance to be drawn into the single elimination stage as well.
Other remarkable results from today include „The Siberian Express“ Ruslan Chinakhov (RUS) wiping the floor with Miha Zajc (SLO) 9:1. Ralf Souquet (GER) even whitewashed his opponent in the first round, handing Iker-Andoni Echeverria (ESP) a 9:0. Ivar Saris (NED) sent Joshua Filler (GER) to the loser’s side with 9:5 in their opening match. Kasper Kristoffersen (DEN) came up with a bit of a surprise, winning 9:6 over Spain’s #1 David Alcaide. Kim Laaksonen (FIN) won a heartbreaker with 9:8 over favoured Konstantin Stepanov (RUS). Laaksonen’s teammate Jani Siekkinen (FIN) took down newly crowned 8-ball Champion Bahram Lotfy (DEN) with 9:6.
In the girls’ division, two medallists from this week met in the first round of their 9-ball quest for glory. 8-ball Champion Darya Siranchuk (UKR) took it up against 10-ball runner-up Daria Cheprasova (BLR). The match was determined by many mistakes. Especially Cheprasova came up with a lot of positioning errors which Siranchuk was able to capitalise from. In the end, Siranchuk was a deserved 6:3 winner over Cheprasova.
In the women’s division, Line Kjoersvik (NOR) was drawn against Tamara Peeters-Rademakers (NED). The winner of that match would go up against defending Champion Kelly Fisher (GBR). The match was quite even for the first 9 racks. Kjoersvik was up 5:4 with her own break shot coming up. She had a ball down and a tough shot on the 2-ball which she missed. Peeters had the chance to level the match at 5:5. But she missed an extremely easy 2-ball to the corner pocket and gave second live to Kjoersvik in that rack. Both athletes had several more attempts at the table but Peeters always missed one shot too many. Kjoersvik took the rack and went on the hill with 6:4. To make matters worse, Peeters scratched when breaking the balls in rack #11. Kjoersvik got to the table with ball in hand and that sealed the deal for the Norwegian. She finished all balls on the table and won the match with 7:4. Kjoersvik will be up against defending Champion Kelly Fisher (GBR) in the next round.
The seniors’s, ladies’ and U17 division had their first round matches played with no big upsets. In the Under 19 division however, Tin Petljak (CRO) surprisingly managed to defeat Christian Froehlich (GER) by a hair’s breadth with 8:7 in the first round. Another top gun who was put in the loser’s round was Wiktor Zielinski (POL). The stellar talent from Poland had to accept a 7:8 defeat against Ilia Nekleenov (RUS). The only wheelchair match played so far today was Daniel Savic (AUT) winning with 7:4 over Gintas Jonauskas (LTU).
The Dynamic Billard European Pool Championships 2018 will commence tomorrow morning at 10:00 CET with the first matches from the 9-ball individuals competition. The team’s finals are scheduled for 17:00 CET.
The Jubilee Championships are played on 60 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
